How To Beat A Traffic Ticket – Advice & Tips

It’s not particularly difficult to beat traffic tickets. All you need are some basic things – determination, some time, and patience. First of all, look at your ticket and see exactly what is written on your ticket. Is all the information correct? If not, make notes of what is not correct. You’ll need this information later on.

Go and do a quick Google search to see what you can learn about the reason(s) listed on your ticket. Example – if you were given a ticket for “inattentive driving,” your State might have this as a strict liability offense, which means the officer who cited you would have to prove you were driving inattentively in order for your ticket to stick.

Next, get a copy of the police report. Be aware, this might take anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks. Again, check for any mistakes, and also check for discrepancies. Both of these things will come in handy if your ticket can’t get dismissed outright and you have to argue your case before a Judge.

If you choose to fight your ticket in court, here are some things to keep in mind so you can win -

Never motion the court before the trial for any documentation or evidence. You don’t want to let the Prosecution know you are prepared for the case. Also, you want the Prosecution as unprepared as possible.

Never testify. If you take the stand, the Prosecution will be allowed to cross-examine you, and they will most likely trap you into admitting you were in the wrong. If this happens, you’ll lose.

Don’t make any statements about whatever you got the ticket for (example, speeding). Don’t let the Prosecutor lead you into making any statement. They are there to find the proof, don’t make their job easier by making comments like “I wasn’t going that fast.”

Don’t let the Prosecutor know what your game plan is. Keep in mind, the Prosecution doesn’t have time or inclination to gather all the information they need for each and every case. Most of the time, they rely on you to drop out.

Don’t ask for a Jury Trial. If you do this, the Prosecution will definitely prepare for the trial. Be aware, the Prosecution can ask for the largest punishment allowed under the law. This could mean serving jail time…just for a little bit of speeding. This is not good for you.

Under a jury trial, you could be found guilty, even if there is no evidence. In a jury trial, most people are not happy to do jury duty in the first place. If they are on your jury, they will be more annoyed at your offense because they will believe you are taking up their time and be resentful of you.

Make sure you are well dressed. If you are dressed inappropriately, it will be seen as an insult to the court. This is NOT going to help your case.

ALWAYS be polite and courteous to everyone there. This includes the judge, the Prosecutor, and the police officer. Keep in mind, these people all know each other very well. ALWAYS be nice to these people.

“Innocent until proven guilty” is for the movies. In real life, the only thing separating you from a conviction is evidence.

If you admit to anything in the court room, the charge against you can be changed at a moment’s notice. You can be found guilty if it comes out of your mouth. Be very careful of what you say. Do NOT volunteer information.

Remember, the proof required in criminal cases is proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The key word here is “reasonable.” Each State has a different legal definition of the word “reasonable.” You might want to Google this. If you don’t challenge the evidence, it will be presumed reasonable by everyone in the courtroom.

Remember if you were charged for speeding – you are being charged for a specific speed, and not for just driving fast. The Prosecution will try to show evidence that you were driving a specific amount over the limit.

You don’t need to try and prove your innocence; you simply need to prove the prosecution’s evidence is either unreliable or is inadmissible.